Twin Peaks Roundup
Wild Horse Education (WHE) has members of all genders. But today, we join in celebrating and empowering women to embrace their passions, stand up against abuse and recognize that their voices matter.
International Women’s Day is celebrated March 8th around the world. It is a day when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political.
Meet some of the women of WHE.
The NV Historical Society featured a portrait of Leigh in an exhibit
WHE was founded by Laura Leigh after she fled an abusive situation and found herself living out of her truck going place to place and trying to find where she could be of some use in the world. Many survivors of long-term abusive situations describe a feeling of being “lost,” of no longer feeling “useful” to anyone.
Leigh initially found her place in this world traveling roundup-to-roundup (112,000 miles in one year alone) and fighting for the right to witness and against abuse of something she said “had less voice than I did.” When Leigh began her marathon it was at a time when someone would witness a roundup a few times a year. Even before BLM began doing daily updates for the public, Leigh was already on task.
She said when she won the first case in history it was as if the judge had not only ruled against abuse of wild horses, but he handed gave her voice back. You can read more in “full circle, the advocate and the judge.”
Through the work of the organization she founded, Leigh has worked to empower other women to take a stand. Leigh has been jokingly called a “walking encyclopedia” of wild horses and burros and the joke is not far from the truth. All of the work of WHE has her hand in it somewhere as she serves from field to court and does training, writing the vast majority of our articles, does graphics and social media, and generally wears whatever shoes needed to get the job done.
Wild horse and burro advocate Cathy Ceci
Meet Cathy
Cathy has been with WHE for nearly a decade and has served as a backbone of the organization behind the scenes. Her work has helped keep WHE running on track.
From documenting range conditions each year, attending roundups, to keeping paperwork in order, Cathy is a strong example in her personal and professional capacity of empowerment.
Meet Tammi
Tammi is a newer member of WHE and she has become a powerful force on our National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA team). She brings a background that includes a career in nursing and work as an environmental engineer into crafting comments and learning about and writing legal documents for appeals.
You can learn more about Tammi HERE.
Meet Marie
Marie Milliman joined WHE (officially) back in 2017. Marie brings a background that includes awards for her achievements as a woman that owned and ran her own insurance agency.
Since Marie joined WHE, she has become a valued member of our team. As an owner of mustangs and a burro, abuse was a subject that tugged at her heart. She became a founding member of the Comprehensive Animal Welfare team we run today.
Meet Colette
Colette Kaluza began working with Wild Horse Education (WHE) back in 2017. She had been involved in wild horse and burro issues, as well as animal issues both domestic and wildlife, before joining WHE.
Bringing a lifelong career in the court system to her work at WHE, Colette brings an attention to detail, policy and protocol that is valuable both in the field and behind the scenes. Colette had a natural talent for videography and captured essential video like the colt that broke a leg at Pancake.
You can read more about (and from) Colette HERE.
There are so many wonderful woman that contribute to the body of work of this organization and we thank them all. From our “next generation” crew to those that volunteer as often as they can like Sara, Linda, Heather, Laurie F., Pam, Laura S. and more.
And a huge thank you to all of you that lift up WHE and keep us in the fight.
May you have a wonderful Women’s Day.
Remember, your voice matters.
Help keep us in the fight.
Categories: Wild Horse Education
You must be logged in to post a comment.